The Hong Kong Rugby Union (HKRU) has named
the squad that will play in this weeks World Rugby Womens Sevens
Series qualifier.
Coach Kevin West has selected a squad that
blends experience and enthusiasm with five players set to debut
under the bright lights.
The newcomers are Stephanie Chan Chor-ki, Vivian
Poon Hoi-yan, Amber Tsang Wing-chi, Agnes Chan Tsz-Ching and Agnes
Tse Wing-kui.
An experienced core surrounds them, with captain
and vice captain Christy Cheng Ka-chi and Natasha Olson-Thorne
both marking their eighth Hong Kong Womens Rugby Sevens
appearance.
Ivy Kwong, Sham Wai-sum and Colleen Tjosvold
each mark their sixth Hong Kong tournament, while Nam Ka-man earns
a fifth April call-up and Melody Li will make her third
appearance.
Its a good group, said West. Its a real mix
of experience and youth, which is what weve been trying to do.
There are five making their Hong Kong debuts, but weve been lucky
because theyve already had tournaments in Fiji and Borneo. They
all have some tournament experience - not of the level of Hong
Kong maybe, but theres only one way to find that out isnt
there?
Four of the five have been in the programme at
the Hong Kong Sports Institute for a while and will be looking to
make an impact this week.
Agnes Chan was one of our great finds at the
fifteens world cup and she has just kicked on since then; its
great to have her in. Vivian, Amber and Stephanie all give us a
degree of pace, they make the squad slightly pacier throughout the
park, rather than having one or two fliers. All of them play as if
theyve got nothing to lose, which is great, said West.
The debuts are partially injury-forced, (after
the loss of wings Chong Ka-yan and Aggie Poon Pak-yan and fly half
Lee Tsz-ting in the build-up), but also reflect the drive to widen
the playing base in the build up to the Asian Games this summer.
We have had to look at things after losing some
of our major strike threats in Aggie and Ka-yan, and a lot of
experience in BB, but thats the nature of the sport - with the
newcomers we are well covered, said West.
Perhaps most indicative of this drive to blood
more players at top level ahead of the Asiad is the selection of
Agnes Tse, who only joined the squad this month.
Agnes has been on our radar, said West. I
coached her in our junior development fifteens programme and she
has just graduated into the national team. Because of our injury
situation, we brought her in to the group as a late addition. We
particularly needed to cover that outside back area, the centre/wing
area, which kept some of the others from making the squad at the
end of the day, but Agnes has obviously done really well. She has
earned her selection. Shes tough and she has speed. Her job for
us is to have a go, to take the line on. Shes good in the tackle
and quite physical. Shes settled in really well and done
brilliantly really. She is a level, mature girl, who Im sure will
just put her head down, take it all in stride and work hard.
Hong Kong open the tournament against Brazil
(11.36), before playing more familiar foes in China (13.48) and
Kazakhstan (16.22).
Like just about every team we will be playing
theyre bigger than us, West said of the Brazilians, who beat
World Series side and Asian champions Japan twice en route to a
ninth-place finish in Rio. They also have a bit of pace.
Actually there are a lot of similarities in the style of play
throughout the group, with China and Kazakhstan also having a real
physical element. We are prepared for that.
With a chance to play on the Stadium pitch
during Hong Kong Sevens weekend - and an even more meaningful spot
on the World Series up for grabs - the team is focussing heavily
on the job at hand, but West is even more excited at the
opportunities next weeks qualifier will create for Hong Kong down
the line.
We are taking Hong Kong very seriously. It is
our home tournament, so there is both a need and some pressure for
us to perform, but we are very aware that our major goal this year
is the Asian Games. So, for these girls to get this sort of
tournament under their belts, against some of the worlds best and
some of the competition we will play at the Games will hold us in
good stead regardless of anything else, said West.
The action begins at So Kon Po, directly across
from the Hong Kong Stadium, on Thursday, 5 April. After the pool
stages, the quarterfinalists (top eight) of the 12-team
international competition will move to the Stadium on Friday, 6
April, as part of the opening days action at the Cathay
Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens. The winner of the qualifier
receives an automatic berth on next seasons World Rugby Womens
Sevens Series.
Hong Kong Womens
Sevens Squad World Rugby Womens Sevens Series Qualifier 2018
Christy CHENG Ka-chi (Captain), Natasha
OLSON-THORNE (Vice Captain), Agnes CHAN Tsz-Ching, Stephanie CHAN
Chor-ki, Ivy KWONG Sau-yan, Melody LI Nim-yan, NAM Ka-man, Vivian
POON Hoi-yan, SHAM Wai-sum, Colleen TJOSVOLD, Amber TSANG
Wing-chi, Agnes TSE Wing-kiu.
Rugby pictures:
Pictures from 2019 Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong
Kong Sevens,
Pictures from 2018 Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong Kong Sevens,
Pictures from 2017 Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong Kong Sevens,
Pictures from 2016 Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong
Kong Sevens,
Pictures of Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong Kong Sevens 2015,
Pictures of the Asia Rugby Sevens Olympic Games Qualifier in Hong
Kong,
Pictures of Singha Thailand Sevens 2015,
Pictures from the 2013 British & Irish Lions Tour in Hong Kong,
Pictures of Hong Kong Sevens 2014,
Pictures of Hong Kong Sevens 2013,
Pictures
of Chartis Cup 2012 and
Pictures of
Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong Kong Sevens 2012.
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